One of the figures at the centre of the Adam Goodes saga, Sam Newman, has yet again hit out at Goodes, comparing his treatment at the hands of AFL fans to convicted doper and swimmer Sun Yang.
Newman's comments come after he recently criticised activists for "hijacking the debate" surrounding Goodes, following the Last Quarter documentary which highlighted Goodes' treatment during the last years of his AFL career.
Sun Yang was banned for three months from swimming back in 2014 for testing positive for trimetazidine, while Adam Goodes has played 372 AFL games and is a two-time premiership winner and a dual Brownlow medallist.
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Newman took to Twitter to comment on Sun Yang, after the recent controversy surrounding Mack Horton's decision not to stand with Yang on the podium .
Newman said "Newspaper article says Sun Yang (Chinese Swimmer)being booed for what he did. Can you believe it. Being booed for what he did, not for who he is. Sounds like racism to me."
Newspaper article says Sun Yang (Chinese Swimmer)being booed for what he did. Can you believe it. Being booed for what he did, not for who he is. Sounds like racism to me.
— Sam Newman (@Origsmartassam) July 24, 2019
He then doubled down after being called out for the comment, again saying on Twitter, "Not ‘hitting out’ at Mr Goodes, merely referencing the similarity that Mr Yang got booed for what he did, not for who he is. Pretty uncomplicated really. #reality."
Not ‘hitting out’ at Mr Goodes, merely referencing the similarity that Mr Yang got booed for what he did, not for who he is. Pretty uncomplicated really. #reality
— Sam Newman (@Origsmartassam) July 25, 2019
Newman's second comment comes after reporter Tom Browne went on Channel Seven to discuss what Newman initially said.
“Sam would say he’s entitled to have his opinion, others would say that drawing a comparison between Goodes, who took a celebrated stand against racism, and of course Sun Yang who’s a convicted doper, is a ridiculous comparison,” Browne said.
Goodes was driven out of the game by comments from people like Newman, who remained steadfast that the booing he received during his later years was not due to racism, but due to his conduct as a player.
Despite this, Goodes recently received an apology from the AFL and the 18 clubs , apologising "unreservedly" for failing the Sydney champion during his final years in the competition.